strawdog65

Welcome!

Greetings to you TzuJanLi! I appreciate your post's very much. They reflect a peaceful stillness of your mind that is of great service to TTB forum. I will endeavor to cultivate the stillness within myself. Thank you for your contribution..

goldisheavy, thank you for your observation. I too realize that The Tao is not able to be labeled, categorized, or nailed down to just one thing. I was and still am seeking opinions on what Taoism means to all of us as individuals, because, regardless of what the true Tao is...it is nonetheless filtered through us as imperfect, and limited beings. Where as, I do believe, the Tao is perfection in it's very imperfectness. A true Balance. I do believe a more positive representation of what Taoism is, would be more beneficial to creating an environment into which deeper understanding may flourish. Peace to you.

Dawei... Thanks for that! I am really impressed with this translation, it speaks to me in a way that resonates very well. Peace to You!

Hello Alfred! I can only offer you my own limited perspective. Based on my life and coming to the realization that I have had Tao on the brain, intuitively for most of my life. And without ever knowing what My "beliefs" were considered by others outside of myself, I am now here. I think that any understanding we have will always be of a personal nature. I can offer to you what I believe Tao is. But remember, that what say with words can never measure up to the completeness that is TAO. ------------------------------------------------- Tao is everything existing, both seen and unseen, whether it is understood or not, by us. It is knowing intuitively that all is of a dualistic nature. That judgments are only necessary to the mind of man. That we and all that is, is impermanent. That we and all that exists, are all from the same source, and that the concept of"separateness" is the Illusion that we must break free from to reconnect with our true nature. That Nature shows us Harmony and Balance, by its example. That our concept of the Way is limited only by US. Of course much more can be said... Peace on the WAY to you!

Stigweard thank you for your thoughtfulness. Contention for the sake of only contention is of no use to any of us. In this struggle of two ego's, What is there to be won? Having no usefulness why waste effort? It's just an unpleasant reminder of the very distractions from the Way, which I believe we are all here to reconnect with. Thank you for your conscientious consideration. Peace to all my brothers and sisters on the path.

Tao contains us all. I do not believe labels of any kind serve a purpose other than to further separate a group into smaller groups. Does this not in fact act as a dividing force? Feeding our need to be special or "above others", to me this is contrary to the Way of the sage. "He who knows, he knows not, is wise...follow him." I Accept being who I am as naturally as I am able, with the knowledge that I am able to grow to be more. I think the "practice" of a Taoist nature is something I would not describe as work. For me it is about emptying my cup of wrong thinking, to make room for what is true intrinsically, and exists in nature all around us. Is it necessary to do anything, to be at one with Tao? How is opening to the Way, really work? Yes it is something that requires effort and being present. But to classify who is really a Taoist by the measure of how many years they have "worked" in the Way, or dividing Taoist's into different levels of progress on the Way, only seems to to me to serve the vanity that is our self/consciousness, and amounts to little good. If when born, children are more at one with Tao, then you and I are right now, are we not attempting to cast away the nonsense of the learning thrust upon us, and let in that which has always been our unseen companion from the very start? A returning...RE- Awakening. If it is our natural longing to return to our true source, I would compare it to a type of migration to which we know not where we are going, But are compelled to do so anyway. Peace and understanding.

Is exhaling you, The only true Way of Tao? I think not, but exist.

As A voice of moderation... We all have our own distinct views of what Is true to us. I do believe we are all united within the Tao, in a presently disheveled oneness, existing whether we believe it or not. The whole reason I was impressed with Taoism is the whole of IT. I fail to see the use of arguments to convince or prove that which is incontrovertible, that being ANY faith or belief type of system. Marblehead, I feel what you say to be the closest alignment to my own personal experience of truth. Shaolin, If you are a believer in True Tao...then to contend with someone purely for the act of contention is wasted effort, and not the Way. Regardless of our viewpoints, WE are ALL contained within the WHOLE of the TAO, We are the living essence of the Duality of the TAO. Peace and understanding to everyone.

I just have to post this beauty here. Found in the book" The complete works of Lao Tzu" by Hua-Ching Ni This to me is a guidepost of the True Tao. Please enjoy! Eighty-One --------- True words are not necessarily beautiful. Beautiful words are not necessarily truthful. One who is achieved does not argue, and one who argues is not achieved. One who knows the deepest truth does not need segmented information. One who knows vast amounts of information may not know the truth. One of deep virtue is not occupied with amassing material goods, yet the more he lives for others, the richer his life becomes. The more he gives, the more his life abounds. The subtle Way of the universe is beneficial, not harmful. The integral nature of a person is to extend one's virtue unconditionally and to contend with no one. Peace to you all!

From the book "The complete works Lao Tzu" Translated by Hua-Ching Ni Tao Teh Ching: Seventy ================================= My words are very easy to understand and easy to practice, yet the world can neither understand nor practice them. My words have only one source: the subtle truth of the universe. My deeds have only one master: the natural virtue of the universe. The people of the world have no knowledge of this. Thus, they have no knowledge of me. The fewer the persons that know me, the nobler are they that follow me. Therefore, the one of whole virtue wears coarse clothes superficially, but holds a precious treasure within.

From "The complete works of Lao Tzu" Translated by Hua-Ching Ni Please enjoy this translation as much as I have! Tao Teh Ching- Sixty-Three ------------------------------------------------ Do that which is not done by doing. Make that which is not made by making. Taste that which cannot be distinguished by taste. Hold the same regard for the few and the many. Requite the unkind with kindness. Thus, one of subtle virtue desires what is not connected with desire, sets no value on the rare goods of the world, learns what is not learned through learning, and induces people to return to that which they have overlooked.

Dawei, I see that maybe I think into it too much. The image of the flower is helpful...Thanks!

Zerostao thanks for being so straight forward. I endeavor to understand the Tao...and all of you help me on this path. I thank you.

CowTao, I am humbled by the beauty of this vision you have presented to me. Thank you for speaking so clearly to to the essence of what I feel inside. Nature saying yes and feeling at ease and calm knowing that all is as is should ever be. The beauty of nature is effortless. ----------------------------- With this question now resolved I can devote more time to Restoring my foreskin to it's full unhampered potential!!! LOL!

Thanks for the cup of tea! Lets drink deeply of Tao together.

Wow! Beautiful realization.

Manitou hello, Well said...even better communicated. This is very much my own perspective of "enlightenment". My perch is an odd one...Other than the philosophical perspective of Taoism, I have always been suspicious any one/group claiming to have the answers to why all that is, IS. When the simple answer is just BE. Any answers after that, come from our perception of opening and letting in what we were too busy to perceive before.

I too, don't see the point of anger in this situation. What would be the point? And are you supposed to be angry with life? Or what? Life can be happy or sad.... But good and bad are just Different sides of the same coin. Into the Tao we go.

I Love the great thinkers you all are! I'd like to know what all of you think regarding the past/present human activities on our world, and how might historians of the far off future regard us? Will we be considered very ignorant and needless destroyers of all we come into contact with?.... Or will those far off historians consider us in a more positive manner? Seeing us as the children we really are. I believe we will be considered a little good and a lot more the destroyers. It is true we have created so much, literature, art, religions that make sense... you know that kind of stuff. But... if we were to weigh the amount of creating versus the amount of destroying, which would be more? (not empirically speaking that is.) What will be our legacy for the future inhabitants of our beautiful blue world?

Manitou, I like the way you put that about the quality of life for the citizens of the world who have the least. When is what we have ever enough? Only when even the poorest among us are considered equally, will change then take place. Peace to you.

Rainbow... Awesome idea! My posts are suspiciously lacking in the happy face department. But I am smiling as I type this...does that count? Can I just say about the original post...Really? Free flowing discussion...isn't always neat and tidy with all the appropriate references. Let's all play nice and go with the flow....Be like water. Peaceful thoughts of happyface people.

I have been holding back in entering this discussion. I have stated similar thoughts...about the origination of any religious minded text. There are NO writings untouched/unchanged by man/womankind. There is no true "Manna from heaven", everything ever written has been filtered through the hand of man/womankind. Unless someone can prove instant mental transmission from some divine being to all followers of some group somewhere in the world....to me it's all just a never ending stream of mental masturbation brought to some sort of orgiastic divine finale. Want to be crazy? OK, here's how you do it... use quotes and passages from the very same book you are proposing to be holy...to PROVE it IS holy. Holy crap! Well wow!!!! If the book says it's holy... than that's just got to be true! (The preceding was not an actual believer, just a non-committal soul with a bit of well deserved sarcasm!) The furor which is brought to the surface every time someone points out the incongruent puzzle of presented facts to be taken as truth, amazes me. Is it not blatantly obvious to people of rational cognitive abilities... that the Idea of any religious work unchanged by man, is in it's self a non-sense idea? An Oxymoron of grand proportion. It makes me ponder the gullibility of the masses and their lack of asking first and foremost Why? Nothing is so, just because it is what you are taught. Are we not more than puppets? God is a lie...spoon fed through various "messiah's" to the masses. Virtuous teachings exist independently of the credited teachers... These teachings which were discovered over and over, independently by different teachers over the millennia are discovered because... they are complete truisms which will always surface to the mind which is in harmony with the TAO. As far as belief systems that have a God/supreme being/holy flying spaghetti monster... Belief is by it's own nature incontrovertible and any discussion to prove or disprove it as something real(or)holy is only the grandest of fool's errands. I Peacefully disagree with any assertion that there is a"divine" being, and that any words scribbled on a page are enough of a reason to condone the murder of any other living human being, just because they do not believe in the same "easter bunny" as you. Besides...the Lorax would kill me if I worshipped you. Peace to you my contentious brothers/sisters!